Salman's Infobahn

A wide range of technologies exists to convert the energy stored in biomass to more useful forms of energy. These technologies can be classified according to the principal energy carrier produced in the conversion process. Carriers are in the form of heat, gas, liquid and/or solid products, depending on the extent to which oxygen is admitted to the conversion process (usually as air). The three principal methods of thermo-chemical conversion corresponding to each of these energy carriers are combustion in excess air, gasification in reduced air, and pyrolysis in the absence of air.   Conventional combustion technologies raise steam through the combustion of biomass. This steam may then be expanded through a conventional turbo-alternator to produce electricity. A number of combustion technology variants have been developed. Underfeed stokers are suitable for small scale boilers up to 6 MW th . Grate type boilers are widely deployed. They have relatively low investment costs, low ope...

Ultrasound activated sludge disintegration could positively affect sludge anaerobic digestion. Due to sludge disintegration, organic compounds are transferred from the sludge solids into the aqueous phase resulting in an enhanced biodegradability. Therefore disintegration of sewage sludge is a promising method to enhance anaerobic digestion rates and lead to reduce the volume of sludge digesters. The addition of disintegrated surplus activated sludge and/or foam to the process of sludge anaerobic digestion can lead to markedly better effects of sludge handling at wastewater treatment plants. In the case of disintegrated activated sludge and/or foam addition to the process of anaerobic digestion it is possible to achieve an even twice a higher production of biogas. Here are few examples: STP Bad Bramstedt, Germany (85,000 PE or 4.49 MGD) First fundamental study on pilot scale by Technical University of Hamburg-Harburg, 3 years, 1997 - 1999 • reduction in digestion time from 20 to 4 day...

The electricity generation capacity of renewable resources reached an estimated 240 gigawatts worldwide in 2007. Renewable resources represent 5 percent of global power capacity and 3.4 percent of global power generation. Renewable energy supplies 18 percent of the final energy consumption worldwide, counting traditional biomass, large hydropower, and "new" renewables (small hydro, modern biomass, wind, solar, geothermal, and biofuels). Traditional biomass, primarily for cooking and heating, represents about 13 percent and is growing slowly or even declining in some regions as biomass is used more efficiently or replaced by more modern energy forms. Large hydropower represents 3 percent and is growing modestly, primarily in developing countries. New renewables represent 2.4 percent and are growing very rapidly in developed countries and in some developing countries. Clearly, each of these three forms of renewable energy is unique in its characteristics and trends. Biomas...